We have movement!

A rare Tuesday post . . . Carmen is out in L.A. with the boys, so I am eating my burrito in front of my computer, watching some Olympics on television.  I kept Jayden up a little bit later so that he could hang out with Carmen longer and because he took a 40 minute nap from 5:20 to 6:00 pm.  I don't mind putting him to bed later, except it means that I eat dinner at 9:00 pm!

Over the past couple of days, Jayden has figured out how to scoot backwards.  From a sitting position, he'll lean forward until he's on his stomach with his legs out behind him.  He'll almost get to a hands and knees position, but not completely.  Then he'll stretch his legs out, push with his arms and start moving backwards.  I tried to get it on video yesterday, but it wasn't great.  I was going to post it, but I think I'll try again tomorrow to get a better video.

What's funny is that he can only go backwards.  Occasionally he'll stop, roll over so that he ends up going in a different direction and then start scooting backwards again.  Yesterday and today he scooted so far that he got stuck. First, he got stuck by the basket that holds Jasmine's toys. 

He kept trying to scoot backwards - he started to get frustrated and then . . .

he discovered a bag full of boxes next to him and was distracted.  It is amazing how you can distract a baby from being upset or frustrated just by introducing some small new thing like a cardboard box.

Tonight he scooted from the front of the couch, down the side of the couch on the hardwood floor and turned underneath his highchair:

He is getting better about pushing up with his arms - building up those arm muscles!

His teeth are coming in with a vengeance.  You can see that his lower gums are a little swollen and he is constantly rubbing his tongue along his teeth and drooling. 

Jayden has also started talking a lot more - he's so close to saying a word, but he hasn't associated a word with anything in particular yet.  He tends to say the sounds "d-yeah" a lot, but it's in relation to a lot of things: his bath toy, me, Jasmine, a piece of fuzz on the carpet, etc.  It's just so fun to hear him using more complicated combinations of letters and exploring the different sounds that he can make. 

Just like when I was pregnant, I get weekly emails tracking Jayden's development.  One of the recent ones I received had a special section on screaming that I really appreciated.  Not so much anymore, but a few months ago, whenever Jayden would scream, Carmen would scream (not really scream, but make a loud noise) back at him.  It would drive me nuts because it did nothing to solve the problem and usually just caused Jayden to scream more.  He might pause for a second, but then he'd be right back at it.  The email pointed out that the goal of a baby's scream is usually to get something from the adult and that babies are testing their vocal cords, which is why the scream is often so loud.  And it specifically said, "whatever you do, don't scream back."  The argument is that because babies love to imitate the adults in their life, screaming back will just backfire and cause the baby to scream more (which is what I have seen time and again).  After explaining this to Carmen, I think we understand each other now.  Thank goodness for these emails!  :)

Sunday Funday

Loving the new tray for the stroller - eating lunch at the farmer's market.

Loving Mama's homemade meatballs even more!
We could only give him a few pieces at a time, otherwise he would just keep stuffing his mouth without chewing and swallowing.

Checking the water with his toes, determining if he really wanted to get in.

By the end, he was digging the water and all smiles.

Party time?

One more post with some thoughts and a request for ideas. 

Crazy enough, in less than seven weeks this adorable little face will be ONE!

The Grandmas are coming out to celebrate with us the weekend after his birthday and we're going to have a little party.  We're debating whether or not to have a party where people other than Grandmas are invited or just to have a very small family gathering.  Part of me wants to have a few other people over - just a few, nothing more than 20 - and part of me just really wants to keep it family only.  If we do have a party it would be a few hours in the afternoon, with light lunch/snacks and drinks.  We'd kick everyone out before bedtime.  :) 

I know the party would mostly be for me and Carmen, not for Jayden.  All it will mean for Jayden is that there will be a lot of strange people in his house trying to mess with him!

If anyone has any thoughts, let me know. 

Long Time, No Post

Once again, it's been a long time since I posted anything.  I was just getting into the groove of posting more frequently, and then last week happened.  It was the last week for the PLC summer clerks, and so we had various events and meetings and work to take care of.  I'm incredibly sad to see my clerk go - he is a wonderful person and was incredibly helpful this summer - but I will be glad to be back to managing just me (and my fellow for another three weeks). 

Jayden still isn't sleeping much at daycare, despite Carmen telling Julia he naps at least twice a day at home on the weekends.  I'm hopeful that he's able to figure it out himself one of these days.  He is getting better and better at going to sleep - it only takes a few minutes to get him down for a nap now and sometimes I just hold him, not even rocking or bouncing or whatever.  He's still not falling asleep on his own in the crib, but we're at least heading in that direction. 

The sad part about him not sleeping much during the week is that he is incredibly tired on the weekends.  Yesterday he fell asleep while I was nursing him in the morning and stayed asleep as I walked downstairs, gathered my keys and put on my shoes - until I put him in the stroller for our morning walk.

Jayden has two teeth now - and I managed to get a picture of them!  The second popped through yesterday, as far as we know.

He seems to be a little more fussy than normal, but nothing horrendous.  I've knocked on every piece of wood possible, but so far he seems to be doing okay with these new additions.  He can't stop running his tongue over them (partly why it was so miraculous that I got this picture). 

We had some friends over for lunch yesterday.  We were going to go swimming and play for a bit, but their son (who's about 14 months) was not having it.  He was seriously teething and was just having a day, plus he'd woken up at 4 am at grandma's house.  It was fun to have people over and to have enough room to actually visit.  But it did make us realize some of the babyproofing we have to do since their son (Gavin) is very mobile.  Jayden was very quiet, just watching Gavin run all over the place and watching Jasmine chase Gavin and Gavin chase Jasmine.  Once we put him on his mat, he started throwing his toys and having fun, but he definitely was more of an observer.  I can't wait until Jayden is a little older and he can play and interact more with other kids.

Practing his throwing.  Jayden throws with both hands, but he often raises both hands above his head, pauses for a second, and then brings one down to throw.  It takes a lot of concentration, but he's got some good arms! 

Jayden still isn't crawling, but he rocks a little bit and pulls himself forward from a sitting position.  He gets into the position in this picture, and then goes all the way forward onto his stomach.  He just hasn't discovered the joy of moving around on his hands and knees yet. 

He is getting so much better at standing.  He still tends to scoot his feet instead of picking them up and moving them.  But after a while, he often scoots his legs into the center splits and then leans himself backwards into a sitting position the ground.  For now, it's one of his methods of getting to the ground from a sitting position.  It cracks me up, but it works for him. 

 When he gets tired of standing, he lays his head on the couch and rests for a bit.  Sometimes he raises his head and keeps going and sometimes this means he's done. 

Today we're planning to go to a farmer's market to eat lunch and get some fruits and vegetables (Mom, the one you and I went to in February when you were here) and then to relax and watch the Olympics.

Weekend Fun

We had a good weekend, running around some, but also hanging out at the house some. 

Jayden has become very adept at pulling up the tiles of his floor mat.  Well, with a little help from Mama, one of them got stuck on his head:

Luckily, Jayden thought it was funny.

We also finally got back in the pool - the water has been over 80 degrees, which is what I require in order to get in to the water.  And Jayden loves the water so much, I felt bad that we hadn't taken him recently. 

I don't know where this face came from, but I ADORE it.  I am so glad I managed to capture it.

Jayden started to learn the joy of drinking pool water.  For now, that means dipping his hand in the water and then sucking on his fingers.  I'm hoping it doesn't go much further than that.

Carmen was giving Jayden swimming lessons.  Jayden was kind of getting it, kicking and splashing his arms.  He was much less scared than any other time we've taken him in the pool.  It was so fun to watch!

Me and my children.  The fact that everyone was actually looking at the camera is a miracle I'll probably never be able to repeat.

 Jayden's sleep patterns recently have not been so fun.  He still goes down relatively easily, although he does not always nurse to sleep - which is a good thing, I'm trying to get rid of his reliance on me nursing him to sleep - around 7:30 or 8:00 pm.  Lately he has been waking up around 11 or 11:30 pm, passing back out, waking up 10 minutes later, passing back out, waking up 10 minutes later and passing out for good after Carmen or I sit in the chair with him for at least 20 or 30 minutes.  Then he's been waking up between 5:30 and 6:00 am and not going back to sleep.  The early wake-up has been particularly disappointing for Carmen.

A couple days last week, Jayden actually slept until at least 6:45 am (one day making it past 7:00 am), which was really nice.  But that only happened two days and we definitely cannot rely on it.  I know I need to get better about his nighttime sleeping, but I just don't know if I'm ready to put in that effort or deal with the potential pain of hearing Jayden cry.  I'd prefer for him to just figure it out, which is what has happened with just about everything else so far.  It's not fast, but eventually Jayden figures it out and the problem is solved.  Here's hoping!

Giggles and Bath Time Aerobics

The last two nights Jayden has been in a great mood when I pick him up at daycare.  Yesterday was frustrating because it took me so long to get home from work that by the time I got home and fed him and prepped our dinner it was time to put him to bed.  It made me sad.  So, I had already planned to order take-out tonight, so when we got home and finished dinner, we got to play!  We giggled so much that Jayden got the hiccups, poor guy.  Luckily they went away quickly - as soon as we went upstairs for bathtime!

Bathtime turned out to be a lot more exciting than normal.  It turned out Jayden had been preparing some water aerobics for me.  He was flipping around in circles, throwing things over the side and then manipulating his body to go retrieve the toys and almost falling out of the tub multiple times:

He managed to turn sideways in the bath, with his feet up on the side of the regular bathtub.  Kind of amazing.  It's a miracle I got this picture - I was laughing too hard.

Reaching for the toys - and almost falling out of the tub in the meantime.

Bathtime was super fun, until . . . . you guessed it - poop!  Luckily for me, I was all by myself since Carmen was working late and it was one of the largest poops Jayden has ever had - not just in the tub, but ever.  It was pretty incredible.  The rest of the night was uneventful - just brushing "teeth," pajamas and bedtime. 

A few more pictures - one from this past weekend that I didn't share earlier and two from tonight:

Eating lunch with Mama and Daddy in L.A.  We loved our bread and sweet potato fries.

More standing.  Just before this he managed to scoot both of his feet so far apart that he was doing center splits - I'm so sad I missed that picture.  He still won't pick up his feet, but he does scoot them.

Exploring Jasmine and her paws and nose.  Jasmine is so patient with Jayden; it's really sweet.

This has been a brutal week and we still have two days left!  So sad that a four day work week seems so long to me, but it does. 

Back to Life, Back to Reality

Tomorrow we're back to our regular schedule, with drop-off and pick-up at Julia's.  It means a longer commute and a shorter day at work, but those aren't terrible.  We're just praying Jayden will take a bottle from Julia. 

I did go to Babies R Us today and bought four different kinds of sippy cups.  When I got home, I washed one of them.  I put water in it and started drinking from it.  He watched me closely.  When I first offered it to him, he pushed it away.  But I kept taking small sips and then offering it to him.  Finally, he put his hands on it and let me pour a little into his mouth.  Then he took about 5 or 6 sips!  Amazing!  It's never going to work at daycare, but it was a huge success that he would at least drink something other than from me.  I'll probably send the cup with him to daycare tomorrow, just in case.  Hopefully Julia has the time and patience to get him his liquids...

We skipped the children's museum today - Carmen and I had some documents to sign for the sale of the condo and my friend cancelled on me.  I was going to go by myself, but I just ran out of time.  It worked out for the better, because it meant Jayden and I got to go to lunch with Carmen.  In related news - the condo closed today!  It's a little bittersweet for me - it's weird to think that I'll never see that place again, but wonderful to know that we now only have one mortgage payment. 

Some pictures from the weekend:

Jayden is getting really good at standing.  He still falls backwards, but he can stand up, with the couch as his prop for 10 or 15 minutes at a time.  Sometimes he even scoots his feet, but he definitely does not pick his feet up.

Jasmine was standing guard, helping me spot Jayden in case he fell (or "plopped" as I tell him). 

This weekend I had a reunion brunch for my mommy group - the two leaders of the groups invited all mommies from all of their groups to a brunch and a discussion on raising toddlers.  It was fun to see everyone and to see all the babies walking around (besides Jayden, of course!).  But it was also interesting to me because I felt like everyone there was so happy and loving being a mom.  And I just have tough moments where I have doubts about my abilities as a mom.  I know I'm not the only person who feels this way, but I feel like lots of moms are better at putting on a brave face than I am. 

The other thing I noticed that was interesting is that people had all kinds of different methods of raising their children.  For the most part, the women in these groups are financially comfortable; the class is not cheap, so not just anyone can participate.  But it was clear that people were from all over the spectrum.  There were moms feeding their children bottles of formula, there were moms nursing 4-month olds, 10-month olds (me!) and 17-month olds.   There were moms who let their children fall down and try everything on their plate and there were moms that were never more than inches from their child.  Some moms came in sweatpants and tennis shoes and some moms came in dresses and heels.  For all of our differences, we had one thing in common - we needed (and still need, in many cases) support.  We need the camraderie that comes from sitting with other moms and similarly aged babies and talking about what bothers us, what stresses us out, what makes us happy.  It was somewhat reassuring that no matter what stage the moms and their children were at on Saturday, at some point they all had their doubts, fears, concerns.  I don't know that the reunion did me much good, except for making me think - but it was interesting to see all the different stages of babies and to realize that Jayden was the same height as some of the 16-18 month olds! 

We have a ten month old!

And Jayden brought ten months in with a bang, waking up screaming at 2:45 am and being inconsolable until about 4:30 am when I finally fed him to get him to calm down.  Even while he was nursing he was hiccuping/gasping.  And he woke up screaming a couple more times, around 5 and around 5:30.  Finally, we slept from 6 or so until about 7:30 am.  And this was after Carmen had slept about two hours on Monday night and maybe 4 or 5 hours on Tuesday night.  Needless to say, he is tired. 

We of course had a ten month photo shoot.  It wasn't perfect, but it wasn't bad.  We got a few good ones - just not too many where he was smiling and had the sign in the right place. 

Having my mom here this week has been great - but funny enough I think we've both been later to work than normal.  Something about knowing you have a lot to do gets you out of the house quicker, I guess.  Mom was nice enough to deal with about 30 minutes of screaming last night while putting Jayden to bed so that Carmen and I could have a date night.  It wasn't very long - we were home by 10 pm - but it was nice to have grown-up time without looking at a monitor.  

My mom took a billion pictures this week, so once I get her pictures I'll post some more for those of you who aren't Grandma Barb to see!

TEEEETH!!!!!!!!!!!!

We have a tooth! 

Just like my mom predicted, Jayden's first tooth is popping through while she is here.  It's amazing - and so tiny and sharp!  It's only maybe a centimeter out of his gums, but it's there!  I tried to take a picture, but there was no way he was letting me, and even if he had, there's no way it would have shown up in a picture.  So, instead you get a happy baby after bathtime tonight:

(the flash on my phone is really bright, so I think I startled him a bit - at least it didn't upset him)

 

The Long Trip Home

As much fun as the trip was, both Carmen and I (and probably Jayden too) were ready to be back in our home.  We wanted Jayden in his crib, we wanted our own bed and we just wanted the space of our house.  But first we had to conquer a 9 hour trip, including two plane rides and a layover (although only an hour this time).  On the first flight home we tried to switch to an empty row, but there were none available.  Once we boarded, the flight attendant noticed us and noticed he had an empty row.  Someone tried to move to the row and he said "no, I have a family with an infant, they'll be moving here, but you can take their seats."  I have never been so thankful.  Even though we were sitting next to a wonderfully nice woman, having our own row made the flight a million times easier.  For the second flight, the gate agent was able to switch us into a row by ourselves - again, wonderful. 

For both flights, Jayden screamed a couple times in the beginning and then passed out in my arms.  We fed him and then we played a little bit.  We discovered that Jayden likes music, and will even keep something on his head when he hears music (normally anything we put on his head, including hats, is immediately removed).  He also loves hitting the windows and watching the shade go up and down.  And the game of throwing things on the ground and watching Mama or Daddy pick them up never gets old. 

Jammin' to some music in Mama's lap - first Al Green, then Dave Matthews. 

In his own seat, chowing down on puffs.  Finally, a smile!

We landed and made it home safely.  And Jayden went to bed at his normal time.  Carmen and I are often exhausted after cross-country trips, but a cross-country trip with a baby is a whole different story.  My back is still sore from bouncing him to sleep on the first flight (my back started cramping/spasming, but I didn't want to stop since Jayden was almost asleep). 

We've been running around doing errands all weekend, but have also made time for some fun.  This alphabet turns out to have been a great purchase - we don't worry if Jayden falls over because it cushions his fall so well. 

Rolling back and forth, and chewing on some wooden circles - one of his favorite toys - it's easy to take apart, the pieces are easy to throw and he can chew on all of them.

I had to work hard to snap this shot and it was still blurry!  He just doesn't spend much time on his stomach. 

Now we're getting ready for my mom to come to be our babysitter for this week.  She's saving us money and giving us peace of mind - we are so thankful.  Hopefully Jayden cooperates and actually takes a bottle! 

Wilmington/Philadelphia

This was pre-45 minute screaming car trip.

The second part of the trip was really good.  We ran around more than I thought we would, but it kept Jayden busy, which was good.  Getting there was a challenge: the drive from Annapolis to where we met Enid and William was about 45 minutes; Jayden was extremely tired, but refused to fall asleep so instead he screamed for probably 40 of those 45 minutes.  Then we got in Enid and William's car and he passed out within 10 minutes.  Of course.  At least he got some sleep in, even if it wasn't enough. 

We went to Philadelphia to see Carmen's dad and his half brothers.  That happened to be the only place where Jayden willingly went with someone besides me or Carmen (he hung out with Carmen's dad - Pop-pop - for a few minutes, which made big Carmen happy).  I got to see Maya, which made me extremely happy.  Carmen's grandma came over to Enid's house that night to meet her great grandson - it was not a total success, but it was entertaining.

After Pop-pop took Jayden around the house for a few minutes.  Jayden quickly reattached himself to Mama or Daddy.

He let Maya snuggle for a little bit; Jayden can tell when he's with people who adore babies!

Jayden sat with his great grandma for a little bit, but it didn't last...  He did at least perform a little bit, gobbling down his food and rolling around on the floor.

We got to visit one of Carmen's good friends from high school, Mark, and meet his kids (who are way too grown up already!).  And, we went to a party in Middletown that Enid and William held on the Fourth of July for family and friends.  Jayden did well, but by the end of it was so exhausted that he passed out in Carmen's arms in the middle of the noisy room.  It's just good that he can sleep through anything. 

Daddy and Jayden were Supermen for Fourth of July! 

Very patriotic (thanks for the bib Uncle David and Aunt Sharon!), getting ready to eat lunch at Tom Foolery's, where the Fourth of July party is.

Passed out at the party.  He might have kept sleeping, but everyone wanted to kiss him and touch him on their way out. Oh well.  At least he got a good half an hour or so in Daddy's arms.

Finally starting to warm up to Grandma Enid, after "only" three days in her house!  He liked playing, just still had the fear of being held by someone else.  Luckily this is just a phase! 

Over the course of the week I had various people tell me how to raise Jayden, whether it was that he needed to suck on something during ascent and descent on the plane (I tried, but when your child decides he no longer wants a pacifier and refuses a bottle, and just finished nursing, there's not a lot more I can do - luckily his ears were just fine), to let him cry more, to not let him cry so much, to not let him eat off of restaurant tables (this is impossible; if I put anything underneath his food he'll pick that up and throw it), etc.  It wasn't so bad.  Mostly I just smiled and nodded and continued with whatever we were doing.  I totally understand that everyone has their own opinions and experiences and that they want to share them - but it's hard when you're already struggling to keep your child sane and other people are continuously telling you what to do.  Sometimes other people's opinions are useful - you can learn new things - so I try to keep an open mind.  You don't want to shut everyone out, but you also don't want to start feeling guilty or doubting the choices you have made as a family.  Luckily Carmen and I have come to agree on most things relating to Jayden and we are secure in those choices.  And he's turning out to be a pretty cute, well-adjusted boy, even if he is slow to crawl/walk!

A few more photos

I couldn't go to bed without sharing a few more.  So here's some more from the Maryland portion of the trip. 

Wilmington and Philadelphia will come later.

At the crab shack for lunch with Uncle David and Aunt Sharon.  Loving his finger foods!

Practicing standing up in the hotel room - with two spotters it's easy to be this happy about it.

Living the life of luxury - a king size bed for his nap!

Look Jayden, Daddy can do it too!  (sort of, well, almost, ok, not realy at all)

Grandma Barb's birthday dinner!  It was lots of fun until I started screaming... (and by "I" I mean Jayden, not Leigh...)

Discovering Fear

It has been a long while since I have posted, but we have been BUSY!  We made it to and from the east coast safely and with little side effects, thank goodness. 

Unfortunately, Jayden discovered his fear of strangers something like the day before we left.  It was great: off to visit friends and family - and clearly Jayden was the main attaction - and all Jayden wants is to be held by Mama and Daddy.  Awesome.  Hopefully everyone enjoyed meeting him, even if mostly what they did was look at him and admire his cuteness.  :)

The other thing Jayden discovered was actual fear - or maybe it was me discovering that he felt fear - but it was interesting.  On the flights home, both flights were quite bumpy and had rough landings - when we landed, we bounced in the air and rocked around a few times before we finally settled on the ground.  Both times that happened Jayden grabbed me so tight with both of his hands, as if he would never let go again.  And it dawned on me how aware he is of everything and how he learns things so quickly now.  Maybe this is my naivete, but it just didn't occur to me that he might be scared in the airplane.  I just thought he might be frustrated, bored, tired, etc. 

The trip was an adventure - it is EXHAUSTING traveling with a baby - adjusting to time changes, to new surroundings, to nursing in all kinds of different places and trying to balance "vacation" with a baby's schedule.  But it was a good trip.  Now we are just happy to be home and to be staying home for a while.  Luckily for us, the transition back so far has been relatively painless.  Jayden is still waking up early (5:30 am so far), but hopefully that slowly inches later over the next week or so. 

I have a gazillion pictures from the trip, so I'll start with a few here and keep sharing them over the next few days.

Happy birthday to me - my gift was a redeye with a 10-month-old!  The flights actually went quite well, and getting the incredible deal so that we could fly first class made all the difference in the world.  This picture was taken during the three hour layover in Phoenix, when Jayden was supposed to be sleeping.  Yeah, right.

The amazing thing was that, even though this was from 8:30-11:30 pm that Jayden was awake, he was in an amazingly good mood.  We played all kinds of games (he discovered his love of throwing everything) and did a lot of people watching.  Talk about fun.

...And the result was that both of my boys ended up passed out in the car ride from the Baltimore airport to the hotel.  In some ways I wish that ride had been longer so both of them could have gotten more sleep.

I was lucky enough to be in Annapolis for the last two days that one of my best friends, Carissa, was in Baltimore.  So we met at the beach near Annapolis on Friday for some fun in the ridiculously hot sunny weather.  Jayden was DEAD tired and really hot, so he spent most of his time under the umbrella with Grandma Barb.

We tried the sand and the water, but Jayden was not convinced.  Oh well - we'll try again.  He's cautious - he likes time to evaluate the situation and take things in, and then he'll slowly try something.  I don't mind at this point - I don't want him to be scared, but cautious is fine.

Still so tired, and seriously so hot.  Holding on to Daddy like nobody's business.

Reid and Jayden meet!  And for some reason both want to play with the orange and yellow/green rake.  Yes, Carissa had brought about 15 other toys, but the only one both of them wanted was this one.  It's okay - they'll be best friends in a year, bonding over the rake! 

Thanks for the set up Lizzle:  yes, we're in a boat on dry land pretending to see a whale.  Reid cooperated, but Jayden not so much.  I guess Jayden knew we weren't in the water and couldn't possibly be seeing whales!

Ellen, thanks for sharing your pictures - everyone else gets to benefit from your photographic talents!  So far I've only made it through Friday - I'll post more from Maryland and Delaware and Pennsylvania later.  For now, it's 10 pm on a Saturday and I'm exhausted so I'm signing off.